Estate agent who tortured her former boss is jailed

An estate agent was jailed for 10 years today for holding her former boss to ransom for £200,000.

Ambreen Gul, 23, and her thugs kidnapped and tortured Waqas Malik to make him pay for firing her.

Having lured him to her flat he was kicked, punched and pistol-whipped, Southwark Crown Court was told.

During seven hours of suffering one of Mr Malik's captors stood on his head while another warned that if he failed to produce the cash both he and his 13-year-old son would be executed.

The terrified 48-year-old fell ill after being given a powerful sedative. Gul then ordered her almost unconscious victim to be driven to his home where she told his wife he was drunk and had sexually assaulted her.

In the dock with Gul, of Hackney, were Mukshud Ali, 18, who was sentenced to seven years nine months in a young offenders' institution.

Quasim Ahmed, 21, was jailed for eight years and Shakib Chowdhury, 20, was sent to a young offenders' institution for eight and a half years.

All four were variously convicted or admitted falsely imprisoning Mr Malik in June last year, wounding with intent, blackmail, having an imitation firearm with intent, theft and administering a poison substance. Judge Deborah Taylor described their crimes as "wicked, premeditated and brutal".